Sticks and Stones
by Francine2869
Summary: Post "I against I." What if Paige and Alex didn't go to Marco's seminar and weren’t there to see the fight. What if Spinner came to Paige for help and Dylan found out about Marco’s troubles?
1. Chapter 1

Sticks and Stones

_Okay, so I took creative liberties with this story. Imagine that Paige and Alex went to the mall or something after school and weren't there to see the fight and that Dylan found out about Marco's troubles. What would happen? I'm probably going to continue this, and reviews would be much appreciated._

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Paige laughed at her older brother as he made faces at her. He was home for the weekend from McGill, claiming that he missed his own room, home cooked meals and of course, his little sister. They'd had dinner early so their parents could head out to the theatre. Dylan was regaling her with tales of dorm life with his hockey buddies.

Someone knocked on the door and Dylan jumped up to get it. A moment later he came back in with Spinner.

"Spin, what are you doing here?" Still riding on her giddy good mood, she hopped up to hug him, but backed off when she felt how tense he was.

"Hun, what's wrong?"

"Paige, I really screwed up this time."

"Sit." She motioned to the couch and sat down beside him. Dylan was still standing by the doorway, but she barely paid him any mind.

"So, what happened? I thought things were going okay. You went to the movies with Marco last night right? You and he are talking again?" Dylan's head snapped up when she mentioned the other boy's name, but Paige and Spinner were too intent on each other to notice.

"Yeah we did, and everything was going fine. But his safe sex seminar was today." He had a pained look on his face and Paige shook her head.

"So, you've known about that ever since the carnival. What does that have to do with anything?"

"One word. Linus."

"That uber-religious freak? What did he do?"

"He called this emergency Friendship club meeting this morning because he wanted to stop the seminar. He said that giving out condoms encouraged students to have sex."

Spinner looked her in the eyes and shook his head. "I don't know what I was thinking Paige, I went along with everything!"

"Okay Hun. Tell me what happened."

"I tried to talk to Marco first, but I just pissed him off. Then we went to Mrs. H to ask her to stop the seminar, but she wouldn't. So we decided to protest after school with posters and everything." She stood up and paced a few steps toward the opposite wall.

"Wait a sec. You're trying to get back in Marco's good graces and you deliberately try to stop something that he has worked so hard on, that's so important to him?"

"I know!" He threw up his hands and hung his head between his knees. He mumbled something inaudible.

"What was that?" Paige quickly replied.

"Linus started saying these things, these, _really _bad things and Marco tried to walk away but Lioness just wouldn't stop."

"And then…" Paige sat down again, tucking a leg under her and facing him.

"And then Marco punched him and suddenly they were rolling around on the floor and I don't know how all this happened!"

"Marco punched him?!" Dylan exclaimed, walking over to the couch and looking down at Spinner.

"Yeah. Tim and I pulled them apart and then Marco left and wouldn't even look at me." He hung his head again, rubbing his fists in his eyes.

"Well, was he alright? Was he hurt?" Dylan gestured wildly, but Spinner wouldn't look him in the eye.

"I don't know. Tim took him home so I'm assuming he'll take care of him."

Dylan looked at Paige. "Tim?" He mouthed, looking like he didn't really want an answer.

"Marco's boyfriend." She started patting her pockets as Dylan stood up and ran a hand through his hair. "I'm surprised he hasn't called me about this." Suddenly she dashed into another room, coming back a few seconds later with her phone open in her hand. "I forgot I put my phone in my bag during last period. There's probably a message… there!"

She scrolled through the variety of missed calls and text messages, all of them understated 'please call me when you get a chance.'

She didn't notice Dylan suddenly turn and leave the room as she sent Marco a text back.

As she looked over at Spin sitting dejectedly on the couch and waited for a reply from Marco, she thought about the major damage control that she needed to do. It was going to be a long night.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter -2-

_I'd like to thank **ACEOFHEARTS13**, **psumathgirl**, **Hogwardsbagofskittles** and especially **Kaitlinbell** for their reviews. Just to make sure everyone knows, this is an AU fic and I am taking some liberties with what I think the characters might be feeling and thinking. I would really love to hear what you think about their thoughts and emotions too. Please review!_

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Marco pressed the wrapped ice gently to his knuckles. The cold feeling was a shock at first but it soon began to soothe the ache. He shook his head at he looked at his hand, thinking about what had lead him to this moment.

He'd set up for his safe sex seminar during last period. They were all ready in the front foyer of the school when the final bell rang and things went well. For the first 5 minutes. Out of nowhere Spinner and his Friendship group buddies had started saying things about abstinence and waving huge posters that proposed no sex as the only safe sex.

He'd seen red those first few moments, but after reminding himself that he had a right to host the seminar and that Spinner, Linus and the other Friendship club groupies were interfering. He kept playing their conversation over and over in his mind.

He was tired of people assuming that just because he was gay he couldn't be a good Christian too. He was a devout Roman Catholic and he went to church every Sunday. He knew things were going to have to change, but there was no reason why he should be prohibited from worshipping because of his sexuality.

He wouldn't have minded if Linus had spouted off some nonsense about gay stereotypes or Christian beliefs because Marco could have come back from them. What he hadn't been able to take was the personal attacks against him. Linus seemed intent on insulting him, and he'd gotten under Marco's skin by picking at some issues that the Italian had already been thinking about himself.

He took a drink of the coffee beside him as he shifted the ice around his hand. He'd never thought that his hand would hurt this much after one punch. He'd seen red for the first few minutes after storming out of the school, but halfway across the parking lot headed toward home, he'd begun to feel the burning sting. Tim had caught up with him and they'd walked home together, not saying anything until they reached Marco's house. His mother was at a woman's church meeting and his father was still at work so he didn't have to explain anything to them at the moment. He didn't know if he'd be able to when they did arrive home.

He'd never felt like that before, physically wanting to hit someone. He didn't know if it was that Linus had brought up issues that were already bugging him, or now that he was very openly gay he felt more deeply about the insults and slurs directed at him. Whatever the reason, he hadn't been able to think about anything else at that moment except getting Linus to shut up. And he'd done it.

His phone beeped beside him and he picked it up with his uninjured hand to look at the text message. It was from Tim, checking that he was doing alright. The other teen had left about half an hour ago, claiming that he needed to get home and talk to his parents incase the school called them about the fight. Marco didn't know what to make of his own feelings for Tim. They'd been through a lot together already in such a short time. He felt a kinship with him, because of a shared interest in movies and music and the like.

But he didn't feel the spark, the chemistry that he'd felt with Dylan. Having only been with one person before though, Marco wondered if the thing with Dylan had been so… new and exciting because it was his first boyfriend after admitting to himself he was gay. His first relationship with an older, very attractive male who'd shown him the ropes. Maybe the situation with Tim was normal for most relationship beginnings and he was expecting too much. He promised himself that he'd invest more time and interest in him and see where the rest of the year took them. He sent a quick message back that he was fine and that he'd phone later once he talked to his parents.

As he reached for his coffee again, someone knocked on the front door and he walked over to the entranceway, leaving the ice on the kitchen counter.

He didn't look too hard at the figure behind the door as he opened it, but as soon as he saw Dylan's worried face he groaned and turned around, walking back into the kitchen.

"And my day just keeps getting better and better." His sarcastic tone was one warning that he wasn't to happy with the visit, the way he cocked his head to one side after turning to face the older teen with the counter between them was another one.

"What are you doing here Dylan? What are you doing back in town and why are you at my house?"

Dylan opened his mouth to answer but he caught sight of Marco's bruised hand and rushed over to examine it. Marco tried to pull his hand away but Dylan held on.

"You should have ice on this. It's gotta hurt."

"I am icing it. Don't worry about it, I'll be fine." Dylan just sighed as Marco picked up the ice on the counter and walked a few steps away from him. He ran a hand through his blonde hair, wondering what to say and how, if he should comfort.

"I didn't believe it when Spinner came over and said that you'd punched some guy. I had to—"

"Don't even talk to me about Spinner right now. I don't even want to think about what that backstabbing coward did."

Dylan lifted conceding hands, holding them in front of them. "Alright. Let's talk about what's going on with you. The Marco I knew would never have hit someone, no matter how upset he was."

"Yeah, well, that was a long time ago and things have changed." Marco himself was surprised at how bitter he sounded. He'd been sure that he'd dealt with his breakup issues a long time ago.

"Well they can't have changed that much. You can't be a totally different person."

Marco looked up at him through his dark eyelashes. "Dylan, right now I don't know who I am. Maybe I was the real me with you, maybe it's who I am now. All I know is that there's so many things going on that my head's spinning. And I don't know why I'm telling all this to you." He picked up his coffee and moved into the living room.

Dylan followed a second later, watching him carefully. This was his chance. Could he convince Marco that he was sorry, that he hadn't meant to hurt him? He knew that they'd had something special and that they still had a chance that a future together. But that meant earning back his trust and making him understand why he'd done what he'd done that first year in university.

"Marco, you told me all that because you know, deep down, that you can always talk to me. Even in the beginning that was one thing you always knew."

He sat beside him on the couch, both of them looking across the room at the opposite wall. "I've thought about emailing you a couple times, I even dialed your number on the phone, all except for the last digit."

He sighed and turned to look at Marco again. "What I'm trying to say is that I want to try and be at least friends again. I want to be able to talk to you, and I want you to know that you can come and talk to me. God Marco, when I think about all the stuff that we shared before, I don't know how I got this far without—"

"Okay." Marco interrupted him. "We can try talking a bit more. But that's all. I mean it Dylan, I've got too much going on right now to have you jerk me around for no reason."

"I won't." They sat for a few moments, the only sounds the muted rush of traffic outside and the hum of the fridge in the other room.

"So… " Dylan started. "Want to tell me what's going on in that pretty little head of yours?"


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter -3-

_Thanks for the continued reviews. I'm trying not to change too much, but I might get something wrong because I just started watching Degrassi recently and I'm still not caught up on all the details. Please enjoy this chapter! _

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Marco looked at him for a moment, considering. What was he doing? Of all the people he knew, why was he talking to Dylan about this? Wasn't there anyone less… involved that he could think of?

Tim – he couldn't talk to the other boy about himself, and besides, he needed to deal with his own life and he wasn't ready to hear Marco's problems.

Ellie – she was also dealing with her own problems.

Paige – was biased about Tim and still trying to get him to reconsider Dylan.

He wouldn't feel comfortable talking to Jimmy or Craig about this and his parents, God help them, would be no help at all. The blonde haired hockey player seemed to be his only option.

He rested his head against the back of the couch and sighed. "My life has turned into a soap opera of late and I don't know where to start to fix it."

"Well, start with the simplest thing first. What can you take care of tonight?"

Marco groaned and stood up, walking to look out the window.

"None of it. It's all connected and whatever I do is going to have consequences and … geez, I wish I could just go back to Africa. Everything was so simple there."

Dylan stayed where he was, watching.

"Paige told me about your volunteer trip. I still can't believe that you went to Africa."

He still remembered hearing about it the week before the high school summer started. Apparently Marco had been getting all kinds of medical shots and info and had been training with a volunteer group. He left the day after school let out for summer vacation. There'd probably been a going away party but he had never asked and Paige had never mentioned it.

"Well, I went to talk to Caitlin after our blood clinic broadcast and she mentioned it and… it just snowballed from there."

Marco still wasn't looking at him, and Dylan didn't know if he was brave enough to ask him to turn around. To see what might be in his eyes. He remembered the blood clinic and the broadcast had been on the same day as the infamous dorm party and he wondered, not for the first time, if their breakup and ultimately his actions, had pushed Marco to make the decision to go. To literally disappear for the whole summer before his senior year in high school. Neither boy said anything for a moment, and a car honked its horn as it sped by on the street outside. Finally Marco seemed to come out of a daze and clapped his hands as he turned into the room again.

"So you heard what happened today with Spinner and Linus. I'm not surprised that he ran to Paige."

"I figured he was just spouting off nonsense. But then he said you punched the guy and that you were fighting and, it just didn't sound like you."

Marco shrugged.

"I couldn't even think at that moment. I just heard those.. those _words_ repeating over and _over_ in my head and suddenly I was on the floor on top of him."

"I know how you feel. The first time one of my hockey teammates started talking like that I punched the wall beside his head. Scared him enough to shut him up for a few days, but I knew that I had to find some other way to deal with the problem. I knew that he wasn't going to be the last person to call me names and whisper behind his back."

"I remember you telling me that you started making jokes out of it. That you turned it all into a mindgame." But it hadn't been a game, Dylan recalled. He remembered plenty of nights where he'd cried himself to sleep, remembering the hateful names and disgusted glances. He might have played it off like he didn't care, but he was the big tough hockey player, He couldn't let anyone see how it affected him or they'd do it even more. If he just ignored them after a while they realized that they couldn't affect him and they stopped.

"I just couldn't ignore him Dylan. I couldn't just let him stand there and keep talking about going to Hell and being a Homo. I probably should have tried to talk to him or something but..."

"I know. I've felt exactly the same way before. I'm not surprised that you finally burst and went haywire. You've had a lot to deal with lately, coming out to your Dad, and you're probably killing yourself studying this year."

"Argh. You're right. I guess that some things haven't changed that much." Marco put his face in his hands and rested his elbows on his knees. Dylan wanted to smooth a hand over his back, touch the soft hair at the top of his neck. Something to let him know that he was there for him and that he still cared about him.

Marco's cell phone rang then and he slid it out of his back pocket. He answered it and immediately his face changed. 

"Hey, how are you?" He put a hand on his stomach as he nodded. "Mmhmm. I did" He glanced at Dylan and moved towards the kitchen.

Dylan watched Marco walk into the other room, catching the glimpse of a smile just as he passed through the doorway. Why did the phone have to ring just then? It had been so long since he and Marco had talked like this. Even when they were dating, it had become more about the cutesy teasing and quick kisses. The connection they'd made in the beginning was still there, but they hadn't taken time to just sit and talk in forever.

For the life of him he couldn't remember why he'd let that part of their relationship get away from them. Maybe if he hadn't been concentrating on his own life and the new excitement of university. He'd thought that it was so important that he have his freedom to be with all the new, cute guys he was meeting. When all along, he'd had something better than all of them. He could still picture Marco walking away from him, down that long hallway of the dorm. He didn't think he'd ever forget those first few moments after Marco's soft announcement and departure. One of the guys had grabbed his arm and pulled him over to the keg and he'd taken a drink, and then another and another until he couldn't even remember his own name, let alone Marco's.

He looked towards the doorway again, hearing the soft timbre of Marco's voice but unable to hear the words he was saying. When he'd woken up the next morning next to Eric he'd felt disgusted with himself. What was he thinking, treating the boy he supposedly loved like that? He'd taken the day to think about things, not phoning Marco but watching online to see if he'd logged on. He didn't know what he'd say, but he'd welcome the chance to say anything. No sign of him all that day and far into the night.

Over the next few days he'd become busy with school, homework and hockey practices. Before he knew it a couple weeks had passed and he hadn't spoken with Marco at all. It seemed impossible, given that they'd talked constantly while they were together. He called home about maybe visiting that weekend, but his parents said that they were going to be away at a conference and Paige was going to be staying at a friend's. Dylan reluctantly accepted an invitation to a gay bar downtown from one of the guys on his floor and wasted the weekend partying and sleeping. He met someone on Saturday night, decided that he should at least try dating other guys, explore the freedom that he had gained. The next couple of weeks, months, he had gone out to different clubs, seen different guys once or twice. But nothing had staying power. It seemed he was always looking or something and he was afraid to examine it too closely because he was almost sure that he'd find he was looking for what he'd already lost. He shook his head and found himself back in the present, back in the Del Rossi's living room. He got off the couch, stretching his arms over his head.

He stopped in the doorway and watched Marco's face. He was listening intently to the person on the other end of the phone, nodding once in a while. So many things had changed since they'd broken up. Marco was more confident, more sure of himself and his sexuality. Paige had told him how he'd come out to his Dad, privately and publicly. Dylan had wanted to call him, but knew it wasn't his place. For some reason he'd let that little voice in the back of his mind control what he did. He'd never called, never emailed him, never asked Paige to pass on a message. Every time he'd logged on to Messenger he'd checked to see if Marco was online, but never sent him a message. He could see now that he'd missed out on a lot of important things in the time he'd been away. How were they ever going to get back to what they had before?

"Tim, honey, I'm fine. I'm glad that you sorted things out with your parents, especially your Dad." He paused for a moment, listening. "I know. I feel the same way. I'll see you tomorrow morning okay?" He looked up and saw Dylan, his face not giving away any of his feelings. "Bye Tim." Marco hung up and put his phone in his back pocket.

"Don't worry, I didn't hear much." He felt slightly jealous that this 'Tim' person seemed to be Marco's confidant, but he had no right to comment on a relationship which he knew nothing about. Especially when it was his own fault that they hadn't talked in so long. The question was whether he'd have to compete with Tim for Marco's affection. Could he really be Marco's friend again without wanting something more? Did he want to start down that path again? He pushed it to the back of his mind for the moment as they stood there, miles of awkward between them. "Sounds like Tim cares about you a lot." Dylan didn't know what he was saying. He was trying to be a friend to Marco, but the bitter tone of his voice didn't portray that very well.

"Whatever." Marco responded as he waved a hand. "My parents will be home soon and I think that you probably shouldn't be here."

"Alright, I'll go. But I want to talk to you again." Marco ran his hand through his hair and Dylan had a sudden, intense longing to feel the silky strands under his own fingertips. "Dylan, I don't know…"

"Whenever you're ready, I'll be here. I'm not going away Marco." They simply stood and looked at each other for a moment. Marco slowly nodded, crossing his arms. "We'll talk later." Dylan wanted to hug him or clasp his hand, something. But there was still a wall between them and he didn't know how to approach him. He strode to the front door and turned as he opened it, looking back. The sun came through the kitchen window at just the right angle to hit Marco, lighting him up from behind. A slight smile graced his lips and Dylan found himself smiling also as he walked down the front walkway to his car.


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

_**Chapter 4**_

_**AN:**__ I'm not sure why but I was inspired to write another chapter for this story tonight. Not sure if I will be continuing this trend anytime soon though. This was written in one sitting and not betaed so any mistakes are mine. Enjoy!_

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The next day was Saturday and Dylan found himself at loose ends. He had studying he could do but he couldn't concentrate on anything but Marco. After leaving the Italian boys house last night Dylan had taken a long walk around the local park, trying to clear his mind. He hadn't accomplished that goal. Maybe he'd have better luck today. He pulled on sneakers, grabbed a jacket, his keys and his Ipod. He was whistling when he headed out the door.

When he approached "The Dot" just before lunchtime, he was surprised that he could hear raised voices all the way outside. What was going on in there? He looked through the windows trying to see what was going on, and was surprised and worried to see Marco and Spinner in the center of the floor. There was a crowd around them but Dylan could see enough to know that Marco was nearing the end of his rope. His chest was having with every breath. His hands were flying around as they punctuated each of his statements. It wasn't often that Marco became enraged enough to speak so forcefully, but when he did it was best just to stand clear and let him burn out. However, it appeared that Spinner was doing just the opposite. He was in Marco's face and it looked like the entire situation was about a minute and a half away from blowing up in everyone's faces.

Dylan quickly jogged up the steps and entered the tense restaurant. No one paid any attention to the new arrival.

"Where do you get off on this "God" complex? Huh? Where was all this _salvation_ talk when you were torturing Rick?"

The crowd was silent, but whispers could be heard running through the assembled onlookers. A ribbon of awareness ran through them as Rick's name was brought up. Dylan saw Jimmy, who was in his chair behind Marco, frown briefly at the thought of the person who had injured him.

"That was a long time ago. I've changed."

"Not for the better. I can't believe I ever considered you my friend."

Was Spinner trying to repair this relationship or ruin it? Either way he was doing a good job of pissing Marco off. Dylan tried to get through the crowd and reach out to Marco, but it was slow going. Luckily he was tall enough to see over most everyone. He wished that Marco would just look over and see him, hopefully allow him to help in some way.

"Well, I have new friends now."

"Sure. The bigoted freaks who take advantage of your stupidity to use you in their mindless protests. _Great_ friends there Spin."

Spinner's fists clenched and his face was becoming an alarming shade of red. Dylan tried again to get through the crowd, this time skimming the edge until he came around to Jimmy, Ellie, Paige and Alex. They were too absorbed to notice him, and Dylan was almost too absorbed to notice the guy who stood in front of Paige, slowly reaching out to Marco's shoulder. What did he think he was doing? How could he possibly calm the Italian's ire?

"You know what? I've had enough. I don't need to listen to this."

Spinner threw up his hands and turned his back on Marco, intent on making it to the door and escaping the dramatic scene.

"And I needed to stand there yesterday and listen to Linus call me those names? _Needed_ to listen to him say those... those _things_ to me?"

Spinner froze at that, even thought the crowd had parted before him so that he had a clear exit route.

"I _needed _to have you stand there, just _fucking _stand there, and let him talk to me that way? Did our friendship mean nothing to you?"

Marco was entering dangerous territory. His anger was fading and frustration and sadness were sneaking in. His reasons for confronting Spinner were becoming blurred and Dylan knew that Marco needed to get out of there before he fell apart. He had been none too steady yesterday during their short talk, and it seemed that Marco's emotions hadn't settled. In fact it seemed that there were too many things boiling just below the surface that Marco was desperately trying to control. Dylan took another step forward, standing beside Jimmy and barely noticing the double take that the young black man did when he glanced up.

The young man reaching out to Marco finally made contact and curled his hand around the brunette's shoulder. It took a second but Marco did look over his shoulder and when the face finally registered, he took a deep breath. He looked once more at Spinner before turning fully and looking at the man behind him. 'Who is that?' Dylan thought. A thought tickled at the back of his mind but he refused to let it come to fruition. He refused to think about the possible consequences of that touch.

The crowd was starting to talk more loudly and starting to realize that the confrontation was deescalating. The excitement was over. Spinner shook his head furiously and ran out of the building, the bell above the door clanging angrily as he slammed the door shut. Everyone looked at Marco when Spinner left, wondering what he would do. He just deflated. There was no other word for it. He fell back into a chair placed conveniently behind him and dropped his head to his chest. Dylan managed to get even closer yet, as Paige and Alex stepped closer also.

"How could he do this? He used to… he was…"

Marco didn't finish the sentence that Dylan could barely hear through the sea of whispers. Why didn't someone do something? Why didn't someone take Marco out of here, away from all the eyes and ears? And then someone did, and Dylan felt his heart drop.

"Come on Honey. Let's get out of here. Go take a walk or something."

He saw the young man step up and take Marco's hand, lead him towards a back door. Lead him away from his friends, from Dylan. Lead him away from his past, Dylan though poetically. The infamous Tim. He almost went to follow them, to provide assistance that he knew only he could give but Paige finally noticed him.

"Dylan! When did you get here?"

"Um, a few minutes ago."

He shuffled his feet on the scarred linoleum as Paige and Alex, Dylan and Ellie talked around him. A minute later he broke into their conversation.

"Don't you think… um… shouldn't someone go check on him?"

They all looked at him, with varying levels of confusion. He saw the pity welling up in his sister's eyes.

"Dylan, Hun, I think that they just need to be alone right now. We'll talk to him later. Don't worry about it."

But as the crowd slowly drifted back to their tables, as food and drinks were served and the tension in the air was forgotten, Dylan couldn't stop thinking about Marco. He wanted to do something, wanted to at the very least to go and find him and make sure that he was alright. But was that his place anymore? Did he have that right? He needed to talk to Marco but he knew the Italian was running on too many emotions right now and it wouldn't be fair to start the 'I want you back' conversation.

As long as Dylan thought that Marco's swirling emotions were the reason he stayed away, he didn't have to consider the possibility that maybe there was someone else out there holding Marco, soothing him and letting him talk about his problems. Someone else that he could now put a face and a name too after months of trying not to imagine Marco with faceless guys who were healing the heart that Dylan had broken.

If Marco would just give him one chance, Dylan would heal his heart. He would do whatever it took to put it back together, and he would hope that Marco would give it back to him. To keep this time.


End file.
